Valley of the Sun - Savage Hogwarts Adventures

It is now this strange holiday in the US called Thanksgiving. Apparently everyone goes home and celebrates by eating tons of food. Needless to say those of us who came over from Hogwarts a month ago don't see the point in this, but it does give us some out of class time so I can finish up my work on Dominic's potion. All of this is a good thing because now that I have figured out how to make a cure, and gathered the ingredients, I don't want to let it out of my sight.

I spend most of the first Saturday before the holiday brewing the potion and keeping watch on it. I know that Pajo is supposed to be leaving for the holiday, but I still don't want anything else to disturb the potion. Stan, Lucy, and Dominic keep me company while the others head out to the main land to goof off. The prep work passes uneventfully and I spend time teaching Lucy and helping Dominic with his research.

As evening arrives, the rest of the group shows up. I have some difficulty drawing the needed blood from Chloe and Dominic, so Lilith draws the blood. The blood gets added at the right time, and so we wait for the last two hours of brewing so that Dominic can take it.

About an hour before the potion is ready, one of the teachers burst in complaining about us being out after curfew. I start rummaging in my pockets to find the note that I got from Professor Clarkson.

At this point Professor Longbottom appears in the corner of the room and sends the teacher off saying we have permission to be here. He then leaves us and the others are all suspicious about how he got in the room and was he really Professor Longbottom.

When the potion is ready, I give it to Dominic, and he drinks it down quickly. The then starts convulsing and thrashing about. We get him on the floor and as comfortable as we can as he passes out for a couple of minutes.

When he comes to, he is disoriented, and not sure where he is or how much time has passed. We give him a quick run down on what has been going on, and I let him know that his memories of the last couple of months will come back shortly. We then escort him to the Infirmary where we again run into Professor Longbottom. This Longbottom did not see us earlier in the evening, so who was the other one? Anyway, the nurse is rude, but I let her know what I have done to cure Dominic and she kicks us out and tells us to go back to bed, which we do.

The next morning, I go down to have breakfast and wait for the others to show up. I also keep an eye out to see if Pajo shows up. When everyone gets there Lilith, Chloe, and I go visit Dominic in the infirmary. He is fighting with the nurse, trying to get out, but she wants to hold him for a couple of days of observation. He has however started getting his memory back which I think is a good sign. We leave Chloe with him and Lilith and I go try to find a room to set up our Defense Against the Dark Arts club.

We go to an isolated class, and I cast silence on the door, and Lilith goes in to make a lot of noise. I can just barely hear her through the door as she screams, so I tell her to do it again, and cast the spell on the wall. It helps some more so we decide to round-up everyone for our first meeting later that afternoon.

I head there early to do some potions work and June meets me and says she wants to help. With a shrug and an "Okay" I go to the room and she follows me. More students show up and finally Professor Longbottom show up and puts a charm on the door to remove magical disguises and we all traipse in and out again. He then pulls out an old battered copy of Defense Against the Dark Arts, and starts teaching us the Knockback Jinx.

America is extremely interesting! We haven't seen very much outside of the island where the school is – dear me, the library is appalling! I have to remind myself that it is, after all, a brand-new school. I have tons and tons to tell you about, but first, I promised my friends I'd write to you and ask you to run over to Weasley's and pick me up a couple of pairs of Extendable Ears and a bottle or three of Peruvian Powder. Why, you ask? Well, of course, Hogwarts students are up to our necks in intrigue. It's like we never left home! My friends fear it may involve dark magic, and it does seem that this is the case, but we do have a Professor (Longbottom) on our side, and we are being careful.

I do keep myself busy. I'm working to develop a good eavesdropping charm (just you never mind why), hence the Extendable Ears! I solemnly swear we are up to good – and it IS good, I promise you. You know me! I would never do anything that might jeopardize my schooling. But these are my friends, and I must help them find out what is happening.

Give my love to Mama and Papa, and to Adamaris, as well. I hope that Mama and Papa decide it's safe for her to come out here to continue her schooling, but I know she's in very good hands with Mama's teaching.

After the conversation with Pajo, we convince Chloe to go with us to talk with Dominic now that Pajo knows she is here. When Lilith finally tracks him down there is a lot of tension between them. Dominic is upset that Chloe left where ever she was being protected at. And everyone else is trying to point out to him that she is a person who gets to make her own decisions.

I get frustrated listening to this argument because it does not help us solve any of our problems, and I bark out "Dominic, Chloe a hair now!" At first they are more interested in their own conversation so I repeat my request and get the samples that I need. I then head over to a table and start examining the hairs, burning pieces of them, putting some of them in different solutions to see if there is a connection.

About the time there discussion winds down, I have finished my tests and now know that Dominic's cure will require some blood from both Dominic and Chloe. Which I proceed to tell them.

At this point Lilith, Moira and company head off to talk with Hanna while Dominic and I stay behind. Each of us doing our own research. Dominic asks me about the blood and that sparks a memory of something he read in one of the books he is referencing. The book is largely about love potions, but some of them make use of blood as a component. He hands the book over to me and I take it to my room for the night to go through, skimming the potions until I find ones that have blood as a component and then studying them and adding them to my book of recipes.

Over the evening, I continue my research and have a bit of a breakthrough. I know basically know all the things that I need to cure Dominic, it will only take me a week to figure out the last details for ingredient order and ratios.

The other thing that I realize is that if they want to practice defense against the dark arts, there are a number of class rooms in the school that are never used and with the appropriate preparations they would work perfectly for such a task and no one would interrupt us.

During dinner, I notice Dominic working on something with scrolls and notes spread out over a table some with his notes and some that he is using for research. Curious, I head over to look at his work, as I study it, he tells me that he is trying to figure out the curse that was used on him, but each of his attempts to recreate it works differently from the previous one. I point out that if he wants the spell to work, he has to mean it, not just go through the motions. I give him some encouragement and reassure him that we are working on a cure.

After spending time working on Dominic's issue, I come to the realization that I need the help of someone who has more access to the "Dark Arts" than is available in this cotton candy version of a school. I head back to my room and go through my old notes looking for one of my Durmstrang professors who might be able and willing to help me with the research. I eventually settle on Professor Lazlo as the mostly likely to be of assistance and I proceed to write him a letter detailing what I know, and suspect and asking for any references or information that will help me solve the riddle of Dominic's curse. After finishing the letter, I head to the owl's roost and send it off with a sturdy looking owl.

The next morning, I sit close enough to Pajo that I can hear his boasts. He includes me in his entourage and talks grandly about his part in the battle at Hogwarts. His details match up with what I experienced, but since I wasn't a participant in any of the fights further back in the castle, I can't verify the accuracy of his statements.

Dominic however gets more and more upset at Pajo, and eventually gets up from the table he is at and tackles Pajo attempting to beat him up. I laugh at this while the others rapidly try to stop the fight, flailing around. Eventually I drop a stink bomb to break it up and the combatants separate with some of the observers getting violently sick in the process. About this time the teachers arrive and drag Pajo and Dominic to the Head Mistress's office for a chewing out.

I head over to Dominic's room to wait for him to get back. Once he gets back, we talk, he spends a lot of time being bitter about what has happened to him, and I give him another dose of the medicinal potion to keep the worst effects of the curse at bay. I then proceed to ask him some indirect questions about what happened when he was cursed.

Where you alone? No
Was someone else with you? No
Is Pajo Pajo? Yes
Did you drink anything when it happed? No
Did you eat anything when it happened? No
Did you inhale anything when it happened? No
Do you remember the incantation for the spell? Yes
Did you see the wand movements? No, I was surprised by the curse.
Where you the only one surprised by the curse? Yes

I asked the question about Pajo, because I have a pet theory that someone is pretending to be Pajo, but that seems unlikely at this point. I also wanted to narrow down that it was a pure spell that did this to him. Finally, I didn't ask for details about the incantation for the spell, because he was clearly struggling against the curse to get that much information out. At a later date, I will probably revisit that question however.

After this I tell him we have made some good progress, and we will continue to do so. I then suggest that he go get some rest because he is clearly worn out. After he enters his room, Moira opens the door and pulls me into the room with Cassiopeia and Chloe. I tell them what I found out and I am told that Cassiopea is trying to get close to Pajo to get the inside scoop that way. When she tells us about the flower she was given, I ask if she still has it and I am told that she threw it away.

We go to look for it, but it has disappeared from the trash, so any opportunity it might have provided has been lost. After that we head to a potions class where I start work on a couple of potions to replace those that I have used. Where we end up in one with Professor Longbottom.

After he secures the room, he gives us a warning about what we are doing investigating the curse and such. He also wants us to be careful who we tell information to especially since Lilith is so free with what she knows. I roll my eyes at this and continue to work. Though I do give him some information about the things that I have uncovered and am working on. He seems shocked by some of my findings. After delivering the warning he leaves and the others start plotting how to set up a real "Defense Against the Dark Arts" class instead of the history nonsense that is on the official curriculum.

Eventually, the girls go off to search for a safe place to practice these magics while I continue to work on my potions.

The next morning during breakfast, Chloe in her horrible hooded disguise comes down to the lunch room, and is spotted by Pajo who approaches. He greets several people at our table and then says hi to Chloe saying it is good that she showed up, that she was supposed to be here, and that because she is, Dominic might not die. Which gets me to wondering if the cure to the curse might have something to do with Chloe.

I have spent the last week or so working on gathering various new potions recipes and isolating any differences between the recipe that I might have and those that this school seems to prefer. From there I would perform some experiments to see which worked out better and in some cases merging the best part of each recipe in my personal stash.

One evening Lilith comes in while Lucy and I are working to ask if I know of any potions that need a hippogriff feather. Thinking about it for a bit, I tell her that I don't know of any, but I do know that they are used in wands and talismans more frequently. Especially wands that are used by Hogwarts students. She then takes that information and leaves while Lucy and I get back to work.

Shortly after that, Lilith and Moira help Dominic in to the lab and ask that I look at him seeing as he is not feeling well and seems to have been cursed. After a brief examination, I do realize that he has been cursed with some exotic dark arts magic. Searching through my pockets I find a potion that I have that is supposed to manage symptoms like this, and offer it to Dominic who suspiciously takes it. He is surprised when he starts to breathe easier and not feel like he is in so much pain. I quickly jot down the ingredients and instructions for the potion on a scrap of paper and give it to him so that he can treat himself. I tell him that this isn't a cure, but I think I can figure something out in about a month that should clear this up. Shortly afterwards we all head up to bed for the night.

The next morning which is Friday, I go and meet everyone at breakfast and after some comings and goings of the Moria, Lilith drags me out of the dining room, and we see Chloe. She has shown up in school against the wishes of Dominic and her parents as near as I can tell. She seems to feel responsible and wants to stand up for herself. By the time we get all of this out and that she doesn't want Dominic to realize she is there, it is time for classes.

For the most part classes are just as boring as usual, and I wait until my special potions class with Professor Clarkson to talk to him a bit about what I found with Dominic. He points me at several other potions that might also help, but after some discussion we both know that none of them will completely deal with the issue. He asks that I not talk to the other students about this and since he is also intrigued by this puzzle, to keep him informed of any progress that I make in solving it.

After classes and diner is over, I had up to the library to see what they have on treatment for victims of the Dark Arts. I don't find much of use, but I do gather what I find to use as a research base and head back to a potions lab to start work.

On the way I see Lilith who is looking for Chloe, and wants to know if Chloe was in the library. Since I didn't see her there, I suggest that she looks in Hannah's room since they are such good friends and Hannah doesn't have a roommate right now.

When we resume the game, we find out it is a Friday evening. After spending dinner making numerous observations about how the school is run, who has transferred from Hogwarts and who is missing, Lilith includes Lucy and I with the rest of the group that is going on the ferry to the town for ice cream before curfew.

The battle with the dark wizards was tense, and I am glad that I had prepared a stock of potions in advance for just such a contingency. After giving Lucy her invisibility potion with instructions to drink it and hide, I started towards the doors to the great hall. As I neared dark wizards, I would toss a potion to interfere with whatever they were trying to do. In one case the glue bomb that hit one was particularly effective. When I reached the doors I used my wand to get outside where Lilith and Trent were trying to rescue Chloe. I provided some assistance with spells throwing objects at Chloe's attackers. We eventually defeated them but the leader fled back deeper into the castle. Inside the Great Hall, the teachers and students finally finished settling things there and were trying to get everyone organized and accounted for. Several students ended up missing including Trent.

As the attackers were unmasked, most were not people that we recognized, but one of the leaders was a teacher at Hogwarts, Professor Lovegood.

We are eventually escorted to our dorms to pick up any needed supplies and then allowed to sleep under watchful guard in classrooms. The next morning we are informed that Hogwarts will be closing down while this is investigated. We will be sent home and then from there we will have the opportunity to transfer to an American school on the west coast that has space to finish out the year.

When the day comes to go to the new school, we travel by porte key, and I become an oddity again. All of their regulations are again based on age which puts me in the wrong place for my ability. We eventually get things sorted out and I end up in a room with Gustoff.

After setting up my lab equipment for potions, I go with Gustoff to find food. As more of the transfers from Hogwarts show up in the cafeteria, they start attracting a crowd. I find a table away from the others so that I can observe how these students behave while Lilith, Gustoff and Moire provide entertainment from the local students.

School has been busy and while I have spent extra time since I started hanging out with Moria, Trent, Lilith, Gustoff and Brunhilde preparing for the trouble that they invariably get me caught up in. For example I have taken to always carrying at least one potion that will flash a bright light temporarily blinding those nearby. I also make it a point to carry a potion of invisibility to make a safe retreat when I need to get away.

So while the school was all worked up with the upcoming dance, I was mostly focused on other matters. Lilith engineered my encounter with Lucy and suggested I ask her to the masquerade party. Once that was done, Moria, Lilith, and Brunhilde drug me off to shop for appropriate attire in Hogsmeade.

While we were on our way there, we spotted Chloe also headed that direction. She was upset apparently she didn't have an appropriate outfit and lacked the funds to acquire one. I offered to cover the cost seeing as how I have the funds and other than the extra expense of purchasing potion ingredients, I don't really use my funds. She chose not to take me up on the offer and when Lilith tried to force the issue, she fled in tears. What is this concern about an outfit to a silly costume party?

Hannah later approached us. What a difference in the way she behaves since she started dating Trent. Anyway she wanted us to help her setup Chloe with appropriate mask and shoes for the party, and that she had already taken care of the dress. So when we went shopping we got me an outfit and a mask, and Chloe a white mask and shoes. The entire shopping event was way overblown and I would have preferred it if they had just left me out of it.

After that I spent some time creating a second potion of invisibility because I just knew it was going to be needed for Lucy. Then I went to bed for the evening.

The day of the party was spent mostly studying and doing finishing touches on my potion experiments. When it was time to meet for the party we realize that Gustoff stood up Brunhilde, but she went with some other boy that I didn't know.

The party was mostly boring music and I spent it mostly on the outskirts my friends did make me go out on the dance floor once. Mostly I spent it talking to Lucy. Eventually we were all sitting around a couple of nearby tables when Trent notices an adult forcing Chloe to leave the party and decides to interfere.

This leads to a mental attack that stuns and disorient most of the students. Then a mental voice makes some confusing pronouncement about the Order of the Phoenix whatever that is). I hand Lucy the extra invisibility potion with instructions to take it and hide if trouble starts. I also pull out my flash bang potion to use if things get out of hand.

About this time Hagrid's body comes crashing down through the glass ceiling and lands with a crash in the middle of the dance floor apparently dead. At this point other adults pull their wands and start attacking various students causing them to collapse in screams of pain. I move closer to where the man had dragged Chloe and where Lilith and Trent already were and threw my flash bang missing badly, but at least causing some sort of distraction while Lucy drank the potion and disappeared hopefully moving to safety.

First trip into the forest

We start the session with us about to follow Hagrid into The Dark Forest. As those in the lead proceed into the woods, I notice Prof McGonagall outside the castle looking around for someone, but she didn’t notice us heading into the woods.

Hagrid leads us along a trail and I keep an eye out for any potion ingredients that I might see along the way. Trent keeps rushing me, but I am the one that notices when a couple of the others start to wander away from Hagrid, and get them back on track.

Lilith gets tired after trekking through the woods for a while, so they rest for a while I poke around the area still looking for ingredients. After a little bit of time, we being to see a bunch of movement further in the forest heading towards us.

Eventually a dark centaur confronts us rudely. I let Hagrid and the others talk to him while I continue my looking around. Apparently this pisses him off, so he comes over to threaten me or whatever because I am not cowering in my boots in his presence. After his bluster a lighter centaur approaches and shoos the other away calling him Bane. The lighter centaur then introduces himself as Firinz. After some pleasantries with Hagrid, we are on our way again.

The path through the forest keeps getting darker and narrower. Brunhilda produces some light from her wand while Hagrid has his lantern. Eventually we find a patch of ground that looks like it has been trampled by a struggle. We find a tuft of unicorn fur and some unicorn blood. I also notice that the leaves on the ground were not from the trees in the area, as if they were drug over somehow.

At this point I suggest that something bad has probably happened and we should leave, but before we can do anything we are surrounded by goblins. They threaten us and tells us to go back. That we don’t belong here. Hagrid rebukes them, and then a scuffle breaks out. Most of the students go for their wands immediately, while Trent pulls out his beater’s club. There are disarming charms, immobilizing charms, and even a blinding charm cast at various goblins. I however through a potion of retching cloud at a pair of goblins. Pretty quickly the goblins are mostly unarmed or taken out of the fight when a hooded man shows up and casts a spell at Hagrid. Hagrid returns fire with a ball of fire torching the poor blinded goblin, but not injuring the wizard.

The goblins with Gustoff’s encouragement let us return the way we came, and so we as a group keeping a wary eye on the wizard move deliberately back towards Hogwarts. When I get back, I am going to be preparing some serious potions for the next time we encounter someone who wants to cause us real harm.

The adventure log is where you list the sessions and adventures your party has been on, but for now, we suggest doing a very light “story so far” post. Just give a brief overview of what the party has done up to this point. After each future session, create a new post detailing that night’s adventures.

One final tip: Don’t stress about making your Obsidian Portal campaign look perfect. Instead, just make it work for you and your group. If everyone is having fun, then you’re using Obsidian Portal exactly as it was designed, even if your adventure log isn’t always up to date or your characters don’t all have portrait pictures.